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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27306820">Something Within Him</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AHeartForStories/pseuds/AHeartForStories'>AHeartForStories</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>AHeartForStories' Whumptober 2020 [31]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Blood, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Experimentation, F/M, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III Whump, Human Experimentation, Hurt Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Science Experiments, Whump, Whumptober 2020, dragon hybride</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:00:24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,627</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27306820</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AHeartForStories/pseuds/AHeartForStories</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the final day of Whumptober, Day 31. Set during RttE. Viggo has always looked at him like he knows something about Hiccup that he, himself, doesn't know. Hiccup can't phantom what it could possibly be and he isn't interested in finding out. But then one day he's captured and he figures that maybe he should've at least wondered.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Astrid &amp; Fishlegs &amp; Hiccup &amp; Ruffnut &amp; Snotlout &amp; Tuffnut, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III &amp; Toothless, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Astrid Hofferson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>AHeartForStories' Whumptober 2020 [31]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949440</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>73</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Something Within Him</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>THIS IS IT! WHUMPTOBER DAY 31 HAS FINALLY ARRIVED! MY GRAND FINALE FOR THIS YEAR'S WHUMPTOBER IS HERE! ALL 13K OF IT!<br/>I started at midday and now it's 2am for me! I said on Tumblr that this was going to take all day to spell-check and it did! :'D<br/>Written for the Whumptober prompt: "Experiment"</p><p>Constructive criticism is appreciated!<br/>ENJOY!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Viggo has always looked at him like he knows something about Hiccup that he, himself, doesn't know. Hiccup can't phantom what it could possibly be and he isn't interested in finding out. Whatever Viggo knows, or thinks he knows, so long as he doesn't use it against him, it matters little to Hiccup.</p><p>But then he's captured. And Hiccup wonders, staring at the bars of his cage, that maybe he should've at least wondered what it is that the Dragon Hunter Chief has on him.</p><p>The place he's being held in, it isn't their usual base. Hiccup has only seen the inside of it, but this is what appears to be a giant cave chamber. There is a large pool and so far, having been stuck in this cage, Hiccup hasn't been able to see how deep it actually is. From his position, though, he can't see the bottom.</p><p>And there is a considerably sized hole in the ceiling, where sunlight comes through during the day. But it is evening now, the sun has set and the moon can be seen reflecting what little light it can down into this cave.</p><p>Toothless isn't here, for some reason Viggo simply left his dragon behind. Viggo is here, however. It's just the two of them, no Dragon Hunters, and Hiccup wonders what he's planning as he stares at the man's back.</p><p>In front of Viggo, there is a table. On it there are books, one of which is splayed open, tools Hiccup can't quite see and are making him nervous, and a bottle with... something. All in all, everything about this scene before him brings him nothing but discomfort.</p><p>Finally, Viggo breaks this silence between them.</p><p>"Have you ever wondered where this connection with dragons of yours comes from?" He asks, a peculiar question to break the ice with. Hiccup shrugs, not interested in answering him, worried for Toothless and worried for himself. Doesn't matter if Viggo can't see him since his back is turned to him.</p><p>Seemingly receiving no answer, Viggo turns to face him.</p><p>"Well?"</p><p>"What does it matter?" This time Hiccup asks. It requires talking, which he isn't a fan of as he's a little annoyed with his current situation, but it still doesn't answer the man's question.</p><p>Viggo isn't even bothered. Something got the man in too much of a good mood and that honestly just makes Hiccup's mood even worse.</p><p>That and that this means he has something special planned for his captive tonight, which can only mean bad news for Hiccup.</p><p>"What about your natural innate ability of flight?" He asks. It's as if Hiccup isn't held against his will and they are talking under more casual circumstances.</p><p>Legs crossed and elbows resting on his knees, Hiccup's brows furrow.</p><p>"What natural ability?" He asks, genuinely curious as he, while he's quite good at it, doesn't have his own wings. He needs Toothless in order to fly, he can hardly call that natural. Certainly not innate.</p><p>Viggo, however, thinks he's just playing dumb.</p><p>"My sources tell me all I need to know and they've told me how you and your dragon have always flown so perfectly together, like you are one dragon. You're certain you don't know why that may be?" He speaks his next question and Hiccup looks off to the side for a moment. It all comes down to his bond with Toothless and how well they understand one another, it's not that mysterious.</p><p>"Let me rephrase my inquiry, how did your first flight go?" Ah, a question he can answer!</p><p>"Quite disastrous actually." Hiccup tells him nonchalantly, a slight smirk, but Viggo ignores this response.</p><p>"When the two of you were up in the air together for the first time, what did it feel like? Did it feel right? Did you feel a sudden burst, an epiphany, and suddenly you knew what to do?" Viggo asks and Hiccup hopes the surprise isn't too obvious on his face.</p><p>That managed to trigger a memory. He's reminded of his first flight with Toothless and while it had truly been disastrous, he did feel exactly what Viggo is describing to him.</p><p>He remembers letting go of his cheat sheet and simply letting pure instinct and his little experience guide him as he and Toothless weaved through those sea stacks. It <em>had </em>felt like a sudden epiphany, like he finally realized how flying truly worked. And yes, it had instantaneously felt right, like he was always meant to be in the sky.</p><p>But he can't tell Viggo that. For whatever reason this man is interrogating him about this and that means he can't tell him.</p><p>Hiccup wishes he has something to keep his hands busy with, they're restless. He stands up.</p><p>"What's with all these questions? If you're thinking about me teaching you to bond with and ride a dragon, you can forget it!" Hiccup reassures him that he won't, tiring of all this interrogating and not liking where all of this is going.</p><p>There is a smirk on Viggo's face as he knows that he hit the nail on the head. Hiccup is such an open book, how can he not reveal it?</p><p>"I have no interest in riding dragons myself, my Dear, this is simply more evidence to a theory of mine."</p><p>"Theory? What theory?" Hiccup moves closer to the bars of his cage, not liking those words. But Viggo has already turned his back to him again and is reading through the pages of whatever book he has lain in front of him.</p><p>It's thick and dusty. Hiccup trusts it just about as much as he trusts anything else in this cave.</p><p>"Viggo, what theory?" He tries again.</p><p>He doesn't like that he's been put in this cage. It's big, too, obviously meant to hold something that is not him. Although, the bars aren't wide enough to slip or crawl through.</p><p>Viggo doesn't care to answer and why should he? His prisoner is at his mercy, not the other way around. It does little to settle Hiccup's nerves.</p><p>Then he turns away from the table and approaches with the key in hand. Hiccup, noticing, steps away from the gate and backs up to the other end of the cage.</p><p>With a swift motion, Viggo inserts the key and turns, unlocking the cage and swinging it open before gesturing to his prisoner that he may step out of his cell.</p><p>He almost appears too trusting, seemingly relying on Hiccup not to run away and Hiccup, therefore, decides that he won't. Not because he sees this as a good sign, not at all. That Viggo is being so "trusting" only means he has this place more guarded than it first appeared to be to him.</p><p>But Hiccup doesn't step out. He crosses his arms and stares at his captor, as if telling him "you really think I'm falling for this?" As if he would ever see this as anything other than a blatant trap, no matter how suspiciously amicable Viggo is being.</p><p>"I'm giving you the choice to cooperate and let this be a learning experience for both of us. You do love knowledge, do you not? Or have I completely misread, Hiccup Haddock?" Viggo suggests, Hiccup's reluctance not fouling his mood, and so he decides to step out.</p><p>Doing this the hard way most likely means calling in the help of Dragon Hunters who would love to manhandle him until he's bruised all over. More Hunters simply means more trouble for him. If it's only Viggo he has to worry about, he might have a chance.</p><p>Besides, maybe there is something a little tempting about his foe's offer, if only to see what kind of information he's hoping to garner and how helpful it's going to be to him and the Dragon Riders.</p><p>Viggo smiles as he passes him by on the way to the table, or rather, smirks as he does. Just short of saying; "Now there's a good boy."</p><p>Hiccup tries not to let it get to him or at least not show that it is. The last thing he wants is to give him any more ammo than he already has.</p><p>Standing by his table, Viggo briefly turns back to Hiccup.</p><p>"Mind joining me?" He asks and gestures to the workspace in front of him. Probably having little choice, Hiccup joins him.</p><p>He doesn't like standing next to him, but what truly sends a chill down his spine is what he sees lying before him.</p><p>The book the Dragon Hunter Chief was reading is closed now. It's as if he doesn't want Hiccup to see what he's so fascinated by that he wants Hiccup's help of all people.</p><p>Or he guesses that's why he's here. He certainly hopes it isn't to become the subject of that fascination. Because he can now see those tools and he doesn't like what he's seeing.</p><p>There are knives of all sizes, though most likely all just as equally as sharp. A small hammer and a chisel, not the kind you would use for hard work, but rather for more delicate tasks instead. There's a saw as well as many more, but Hiccup can't imagine what Viggo would want to use this for. He doesn't want to imagine what any of these things can be used for.</p><p>Just what is Viggo planning? Those tools aren't going to be used on him, are they? And what about that mystery bottle? Whatever it's containing, Hiccup is willing to bet it can't be anything good.</p><p>He's rearranging them, making sure they lie neatly on the wooden surface. Hiccup can't tell if he's doing it out of compulsion or just to make him nervous.</p><p>"Tell me about your dragons. What is your relation to them?"</p><p>"Excuse me?" Hiccup asks, briefly glancing up at him, but then deciding that it must be a better idea to watch his hands.</p><p>"The dragon pack on Berk. My sources tell me that, amongst all the Vikings, it's you the dragons listen to the most, even above the highest authority figure in your village, your father. Why is that?" He asks so casually as if they're having a simple conversation and completely ignoring the fact that they're enemies.</p><p>The last thing Hiccup would want to talk with him about are the dragons Viggo would very much like to capture and sell. Either whole or piece by piece.</p><p>"Why would I tell you about Berk's pack? The pack that counts on me to protect them?" What Hiccup wanted was to emphasize how the man with him should not expect anything out of him, that his lips are sealed, but that isn't what Viggo hears.</p><p>"They count on you, do they? You specifically? Firebreathing dragons, a whole pack of them, rely on you, a single human, to keep them safe? And you honestly expect me not to ask you any more questions?" Viggo places a hand on the table as he faces his current "partner" in science.</p><p>Hiccup doesn't like this. He doesn't like this at all. Viggo's whole demeanor tonight is so peculiar. There is such curiosity, such fascination, and in the usual Grimborn way, they present themselves in such a malicious way.</p><p>"No, I'm not answering your questions, Viggo!" Hiccup smacks his hand on the wood, hoping to show how determined he is not to answer.</p><p>Viggo doesn't look entirely too pleased with this display, glancing at Hiccup's hand on the table.</p><p>"Are you sure that's what you want to be? Difficult? Did my offer to perform this experiment as equals not satisfy you? I can always call in outside help." So he lets out a subtle threat and Hiccup can't quite tell which one he should be more afraid of. The verbal one, or the one where Viggo gently fingers the saw lying on his side of the table.</p><p>So if he refuses to answer his questions, he doesn't just have some good old manhandling to look forward to, but whatever that saw can be used for as well?</p><p>Viggo is going straight for the kill on this one, isn't he? Whatever this "experiment" that he just mentioned is about, it's big enough that he isn't willing to take things slow. Either Hiccup cooperates right this instant until it's all over, or he risks being held down and lose a couple more body parts.</p><p>Hiccup swallows visibly, shaken by the threat. His gaze meets Viggo's.</p><p>"Well?"</p><p>Hiccup lets out a sigh. Perhaps to calm himself?</p><p>"You've heard of the Red Death before?" He asks once he's managed to regain his composure a little. He hopes he isn't shaking, he's usually good at steadying himself.</p><p>"Yes, of course. I've done my research ever since our very first encounter. At first, I thought the tale of the Boy and the Dragon who defeated the Red Death was nothing but a way for a disappointed father to make up for his disgraceful son. After all, that is the way it goes with you Vikings, is it not?" Viggo responds to his question and in a more timely manner than his "equal".</p><p>Hiccup feels himself getting a little angry at that comment and looks away. It hits a sore spot.</p><p>"But then our games properly started and I realized that, if anybody would successfully destroy a dragon that size, it would have to be you," Viggo speaks to him with an air of admiration, as if hearing the truth behind this tall tale has pleasantly surprised him.</p><p>"However, as much as I would love to discuss this story with you, we don't have the time as you've left my question unanswered." Hiccup fights the urge to sigh again.</p><p>"The Red Death, she acted like a queen for the pack that now lives with us on Berk. Fishlegs thinks that, since it was my plan that defeated her and there were plenty of dragons to see that, I may have taken her place. But it's just a theory!" He emphasizes that last part. He doesn't want Viggo to get any crazy ideas.</p><p>But Viggo, he just looks content with this information, like Hiccup just reaffirmed something he already knows.</p><p>"But you knew that already." So he states and crosses his arms, but whether it's in agitation or defense, he doesn't know.</p><p>"I had my suspicions. Perhaps I didn't take you for a "queen", but yes, I had my suspicions." The man says, taking some enjoyment out of annoying his young, and temporary, cohort.</p><p>This entire situation, Hiccup finds that Viggo is having way too much fun. This isn't some friendly meeting that they're having.</p><p>No, it isn't and he hates everything about this. Standing here next to Viggo, talking with Viggo, almost as if they are partners or fellow scholars. It feels so wrong.</p><p>And he soon finds it's about to get a whole lot worse than this.</p><p>"But now that this is sorted, I want you to undress."</p><p>"Wait, you want me to what?" Hiccup wasn't exactly making himself comfortable, but that still takes him off guard.</p><p>Viggo picks up a knife before he answers and admires its glint in the torchlight.</p><p>"You heard me. This experiment requires you in a state of undress. Don't worry, I only need you to remove your armor and your tunic." He answers as if that is in any way comforting. Especially when he's playing with that knife in that manner.</p><p>"I'm-I'm not going to..." His words end there, his level of discomfort rises dramatically.</p><p>"Hmm, I could always-"</p><p>"O-okay, fine!" He knows what Viggo wants to say, he wants to threaten him with "outside help" again. And if there is something that would make stripping for Viggo Grimborn worse, it's stripping in front of and being stripped by Viggo Grimborn and his men. It would be humiliating.</p><p>So he does it voluntarily, or about as voluntary as undressing under duress is. First removing his pauldrons before pulling his chest armor off. At his tunic, he hesitates.</p><p>"Well?" Viggo presses when he notices Hiccup's reluctance. His good mood takes another little dip, he's growing impatient.</p><p>"I-I-I can't just... Viggo, hey!" Hiccup is about to his express his hesitation when Viggo takes the knife in his hand, grabs Hiccup's tunic, and cuts right through it. Because of his carelessness, it grazes his skin and creates both a red line and an accompanying awful stinging on his chest.</p><p>Hiccup backs away startled and looks down at himself, hands grabbing the cut pieces of his clothing. The cut is already bleeding and Viggo managed to get through most of his tunic as well as his undertunic. He glares up at him and Viggo returns the favor.</p><p>"I am a man with reasonable patience, Hiccup Haddock, but my patience is wearing thin. I am not taking the time to watch you dilly-dally when we have a schedule to uphold."</p><p>"A schedule? Is there an actual schedule or are you just saying that because we're running out of time?" Hiccup asks him, angry with his current situation.</p><p>Though he asks this, neither sound like a good option. A schedule can mean that Viggo wants this to be a regular thing, undressing for whatever reason, for however long Hiccup will be held captive by him before the Dragon Riders eventually save him. Meanwhile running out of time may suggest that there is something Viggo wants done before it's too late to do it and that can make a man desperate and unpredictable as a result. So really, neither are preferable.</p><p>Viggo doesn't answer his question, instead furrowing his brow.</p><p>"Tunic, Hiccup."</p><p>So he removes them, both layers, and is left bare from the figurative belt up. As if this couldn't get any worse, though Hiccup has a feeling it might still get worse and in so many ways.</p><p>He can feel Viggo's gaze on him and he can't bring himself to meet it. After all their interactions and Viggo's subtle hints, making himself vulnerable in this way isn't exactly something he wanted to do.</p><p>Gods, he can feel Viggo's eyes on him as he passes him by, knife just grazing his arm harmlessly and making goosebumps appear on his skin.</p><p>He's doing it on purpose, he must be. He can't let it get to him.</p><p>But he does, his breath hitches when the knife leaves his skin and Viggo walks away from him. He can't tell if it's because of discomfort, his nerves, or something else entirely.</p><p>The Dragon Hunter Chief approaches something standing in the beam of moonlight coming down from the hole in the ceiling. It's elevated and flat, but still made of rock, like some sort of pedestal has been carved out. Hiccup isn't sure if he wants to follow him, nervous about what might happen when he does.</p><p>"Are you coming or not?" Unfortunately, his captor isn't giving him much of a choice.</p><p>"Viggo, what are we doing here? You demand answers from me, threaten me with force if I hesitate to give them, the least you can do is tell me what I can expect in the next... however long this is going to take." Though he's used to the cold north, he shivers as he speaks.</p><p>"You'll see." Of course, that's the answer that he gives him.</p><p>"Pedestal, get on it." Viggo orders next and Hiccup figures he has to. Otherwise, he'll just be threatened by "outside help" some more.</p><p>So he gets on it, attempting to stand, but then Viggo pulls him down onto his knees. His upper body is already bare and vulnerable, might as well be forced into a submissive position, too.</p><p>Hiccup grunts and almost fights it. He was right to think that things can still get worse.</p><p>Viggo is standing behind him now, rolling the blade in his hand. Hiccup can feel his heart pounding. He hates having that man so close and beyond his view.</p><p>His free hand settles on his shoulder and Hiccup nearly jumps straight to his feet because of how on edge he is.</p><p>His hand is warm, though, warmer than Hiccup would like it to be.</p><p>"What're you doing?"</p><p>"Calm yourself. No need to get worked up and make this experience any more unpleasant than it needs to be." Hiccup glares at his fists as they rest on his lap. How is he supposed to listen when that is the kind of reassurance he's being given?</p><p>He wishes he wasn't shaking, but he is. He's so aware of everything, he's pretty sure he can hear the man behind him breathe.</p><p>The cold of the knife touches the skin on his back, a little above his right shoulder blade.</p><p>"Viggo-"</p><p>"Relax, don't struggle and it'll be over soon."</p><p>The blade nicks into his flesh and Hiccup can't take it anymore. He jumps to his feet and spins around to face the other, removing himself from the platform.</p><p>"No, I can't do this! I'm answering your questions, I've stripped down to just my pants, and now you expect me to just let you cut into my body?! And for what?! You haven't given me any answers of your own and you refuse to explain what you're endgame is!" Hiccup raises his voice, heart pounding.</p><p>Viggo simply watches him, wearing an expression that tells Hiccup that he's not even considering changing this one-sided exchange of information.</p><p>"Fine, if you want to do it the hard way." So he calls in two of his men to grab Hiccup, one on each arm, to force him back upon the rock.</p><p>"What?! No!" Grunting, Hiccup attempts to fight them, struggling himself free on one side before a third Hunter joins them to pull the lead Dragon Rider back onto the pedestal.</p><p>"No, let go! Viggo! Viggo, all I want is some answers! I don't understand why you can't give me those. What are you planning on doing to me?!" It is frightening. To be manhandled in such a way by three men both bigger and stronger than him, to be forced back down on his knees and held down to keep him at the mercy of Viggo Grimborn and his questionable actions.</p><p>"I've told you, Hiccup, you'll have to wait and see. Something things are better left to be experienced. Now be quiet and take it." Viggo glowers down at him. That is about the only explanation he'll be getting from him and all it does is make him even more anxious.</p><p>Viggo supposes this isn't a bad thing. A fast heartbeat just means it'll be spread through his system faster.</p><p>Taking place behind him again, Viggo replaces the blade on his back, presses, and drags it down. It is slow and methodical, he's more concerned with keeping his cut straight than he is with Hiccup's comfort.</p><p>And Hiccup, he's left to deal with it. He doesn't want to show how much it pains him to have his flesh slowly split open, but there are pained whimpers he can't suppress. And neither can he stop the shivers of his body, nor the way the muscles of his back contract, as if they stand a chance of stopping this.</p><p>Viggo is done after it is repeated on the left side of his spine as well, but the three Dragon Hunters don't let go.</p><p>"Fuck..." A curse slips past his lips this time. It hurts so bad and those two slashes aren't all that short either. His neck is starting to hurt, too, from the way he's being held.</p><p>The three men keeping him pinned let out a chuckle, laughing at his misery.</p><p>"Quiet. We aren't here for hilarity or pranks." Viggo suddenly sounds farther away. Hiccup wants to look, but his restrainers aren't allowing him to.</p><p>It sounds like Viggo is back by the table and Hiccup hopes that it isn't to pick a different torture device.</p><p>"You, let him go." The Hunter Chief orders the man holding Hiccup's neck to release him and he does. After a little push for extra measure, naturally.</p><p>Viggo returns and kneels down in front of Hiccup holding the bottle that was previously standing next to the mystery book.</p><p>"Tell me, Hiccup Haddock, what do you know about Fireworm Queens and the gell they secrete for their young ones?" He asks.</p><p>"What can I tell you that the Dragon-Eye hasn't already?" Hiccup asks in turn, still an edge to his tone despite his watery eyes.</p><p>"I am simply testing your knowledge, no need to be so hostile." He can't tell if Viggo is actually being serious or not. He does all of this to him and then expects Hiccup to not get hostile? He must be joking.</p><p>Viggo stands and uncorks the opaque bottle. A smell that is horrendously sweet fills the air almost immediately and makes everyone present gag at the intensity. Their nostrils burn.</p><p>"That's-"</p><p>"The secretion of a Fireworm Queen is contained within this bottle, but it isn't the kind fed to all her offspring. Can you tell?" He asks and Hiccup supposes that he can.</p><p>That scent is familiar, he remembers smelling it in the cavern of the Fireworm Queen he and the Dragon Riders went to, to save Hookfang's life once or when that same dragon came to them for help. But that smell wasn't as strong as the one he can smell now. This one is much, much stronger, to the point that it makes him want to throw up. He has a feeling he knows what it is.</p><p>Noticing Hiccup's refusal to respond by how he clenches his jaw, Viggo answers for him.</p><p>"This is the hormonal gel given to Fireform larvae that are meant to become queens someday. It is potent and it is the star of today's experiment. Well, the two of you share the spot." He tells him with a smirk and then moves behind him again.</p><p>Hiccup watches him go until he's out of sight, dread knotting his stomach.</p><p>"Do you know what it does? It makes a Fireworm independent from the gel that gives them their heat, it enables them to produce it themselves, changes them so they can grow in the same size and strength as the queens before them. They become a queen themselves." Hiccup can hear Viggo pull something out by the way it's dripping the gel back into the bottle. Fireworm gel shouldn't be this liquid.</p><p>"Do you know what this means, Hiccup? With a certain dosage, a Fireworm's hormonal gel can change a larvae's very physiology to the point that they become an entirely new kind of dragon. It brings out that which is hidden deeply within them to elevate them to something new. Imagine the kind of power such a gel can give if experimented with, imagine the possibilities." There is such passion in Viggo's words as he dumps all of this info on his abductee.</p><p>"You're very talkative all of a sudden," Hiccup says.</p><p>"I am merely sharing what I know."</p><p>Something is placed on his back over one of his injuries, splatting onto his person before it's properly put in place. It feels like a long strip of cloth drenched in diluted gell and it's mingling with his blood, soaked up by his wound.</p><p>It feels cold at first, until the gel seems to activate with his body heat and quickly warms up to the point of hurting. Hiccup breathes through it as much as he can. If it's this intense in a diluted form, what is the gell like in its true form?</p><p>The same thing happens to his other cut and Hiccup hisses as the second strip heats up, too.</p><p>"Can't imagine it to be too comfortable." Viggo sasses, as if that's something Hiccup wants to hear.</p><p>"Oh... Why-why are you doing this? What are you hoping to accomplish?" Hiccup tries once more, his cheeks flushing as the temperatures of his body rises. Within moments he feels feverish.</p><p>"What I am trying to accomplish? Hopefully, the exact result I'm looking for." Again, not what he wants to hear.</p><p>Viggo appears in front of him again and grabs his chin. Hiccup tries to break free, but Viggo's grip is tight.</p><p>The muffled sound of an explosion shakes the cave chamber and small stones drop down from the ceiling here and there.</p><p>"Dragon Riders." One of the Hunters mutters and another groans in dismay.</p><p>Meanwhile, Hiccup feels relief wash over him.</p><p>At least for a short moment.</p><p>"Then we'll have to hurry." Viggo's grip on his chin tightens and he forces his mouth open. Hiccup struggles to break free, but the third man joins in again and grabs hold of his hair and jaw.</p><p>"No!" A garbled yell leaves Hiccup, but it's no use. Whatever else remains in the bottle, Viggo forces it down his throat and this isn't as diluted as the gell on the strips of cloth.</p><p>The effect is instantaneous. His lips, the entire inside of his mouth, his throat, everything becomes unbearably tingly and hot. It's as if he's being burned from the inside out and it makes him panic. If he wasn't crying already, he certainly is now.</p><p>Covering his mouth and nose, Viggo keeps Hiccup from spitting it back out, smiling all the while.</p><p>"You'll have to forgive, my Dear, but considering our circumstances, I was forced to give you more than the natural doses. Much, much more." He tells him and Hiccup can feel it, with the way he's burning from the inside out.</p><p>There is another explosion, followed by another.</p><p>"I really wish I could stay and see what happens, but it is time for me to leave soon." He says as he still keeps his hand in place. He doesn't plan on letting go until he's certain it's all gone.</p><p>Or until a plasma blast sends them all flying.</p><p>It isn't aimed at them, but at the ground instead, lest the Night Fury responsible ends up hitting his own Rider. But the force behind the shot is still powerful enough to fling all five of them.</p><p>Hiccup falls to the ground and rolls in the direction of the lake. As per his luck, he falls right in, ending up completely submerged.</p><p>Or perhaps it is fortunate, the hot sensation on his lips and tongue alleviates just a tad bit with the cooling water.</p><p>"Hiccup!" That is Astrid's muffled yell and Toothless roars in unison with her.</p><p>Hiccup can't see what is happening, cringing as the freezing water cools his body and takes his breath away.</p><p>He doesn't regain any movement, body locked by cold, but he doesn't have to. Toothless dives right in to pull him out.</p><p>Sputtering out water after he's pulled to the surface, Hiccup clings to his dragon and fervently rubs at his face. That burning on his lips and mouth, it needs to go and water is his best option. He tries to wash everything off.</p><p>Toothless doesn't quite get what is wrong, but he lets Hiccup do as he wishes. If it helps him to wash whatever it is that is wrong with him off, then he will try and stay as still as he can. Hiccup is holding onto him for support.</p><p>Once the burning tingling has been taken care of, Hiccup lets Toothless pull him onto solid ground. It isn't completely gone yet, but it has lessened enough to make it bearable. Just slightly more bearable than it was before, that is.</p><p>Astrid helps him get out of the water, grabbing Hiccup's hands to pull him up. The other Dragon Riders are there, too, and they surround him immediately, helping with getting him up. Toothless follows swiftly.</p><p>"Hiccup, are you okay?" Astrid asks, hands on his shoulders, but he takes them away from him. She gives him a look.</p><p>"I'm sorry, I just can't stand touching right now." His skin is still too tingly, too sensitive. The other Riders quickly take their hands off him.</p><p>"What the Hel is this?" Snotlout asks, referring to the strips of cloth covering what are clearly two bleeding cuts.</p><p>"I-I don't-I don't even know where to start. But please, get those off." Hiccup responds. The Fireworm gel seems to have cooled down from the water, a mercy considering what he felt like before.</p><p>Fishlegs moves behind him, four of the Riders looking over Hiccup's shoulders to take a look at what their healer will be doing.</p><p>"They look like they're stuck," Ruffnut states, just shy of touching the cloth.</p><p>"Well, let's hope they're not or we might be hurting Hiccup even more than he already is." Astrid retorts.</p><p>Fishlegs studies the strips before taking a corner and pulling a tad just to test the waters. Hiccup cringes.</p><p>"Oh no, they're stuck, they're very stuck." Fishlegs notices and stops.</p><p>Just like anything dragon-related, cooling it only makes it impossible to work with, much like the amber of Death Song dragons.</p><p>"Maybe it's better to take care of this on the Edge. We'll be home, you'll be in your hut, and we'll have a lot more supplies on hand than what we have now." Astrid suggests and Hiccup finds himself mulling it over.</p><p>Whatever Viggo's experiment is supposed to accomplish, leaving the gel to just sit on his skin might not be the best idea. But if he has to choose between having this issue taken care of here, in a dank cave with little medical supplies, and his home away from home, where his bed is and his workspace, then his choice is quickly made.</p><p>"Let's go home."</p>
<hr/><p>It was an uncomfortable trip. Hiccup was able to fly on his own as his injuries didn't keep him from doing so. A blanket had been fashioned into a makeshift tunic by use of a belt to protect him from the freezing winds, but it couldn't stop the pulling he felt on his back.</p><p>The two wounds alone would be troublesome on their own, but with the gel sticking cloth into them makes them feel like they're being pulled on and it's unpleasant at the very least.</p><p>Dragon's Edge appearing in the distance is a blessing and they eventually reach it. Before long, Hiccup is in his hut while Astrid and Fishlegs figure out what to do about their current problem. So long as those cuts are covered, they can't treat them and that means they need to get rid of those strips first.</p><p>"And you said they felt hot?" Fishlegs asks Hiccup to repeat, wanting to know if he heard right so he can properly think of a solution.</p><p>Sitting on a chair and finding no way to sit comfortably with his back situation, Hiccup nods.</p><p>"Like Death Song amber before it cools." He nods.</p><p>"Maybe we can free you from that Fireworm gel like we free someone from Death Song amber? Heat it up until it lets go?" Astrid suggests, sitting on a chair, too, as is Fishlegs. They're both behind him, inspecting the situation before them.</p><p>"Hmmm, yeah, that could work, but we'd need to be quick. That stuff was so hot, too hot, I don't want to burn my back." Hiccup reluctantly replies. He's not looking forward to what they most likely will end up doing to help him, he doesn't want to experience that kind of burning again.</p><p>But he knows it and they know it. Astrid and Fishlegs share a look, sharing Hiccup's thought process.</p><p>"I'll go grab the Inferno," Astrid says and gets up to fetch it on the loft. Hiccup watches her go for a moment before his attention is taken by Fishlegs.</p><p>"We promise to be careful, Hiccup, and we'll try to work as fast as we can." He promises him while Astrid returns with the Dragon blade.</p><p>They both look at her, watch her check if it's still covered in Nightmare saliva before she lights it with a button and Hiccup fills with dread.</p><p>Astrid joins Fishlegs again and they get to work, Astrid holding the sword at the stiff strips to warm them up.</p><p>Fortunately for him, it doesn't take as long as Hiccup fears, the gel becomes workable when heated up and Fishlegs manages to pull the cloth off. The second they let go, Astrid takes the Inferno away and Hiccup breathes a sigh of relief.</p><p>At least that's over with, now they can properly care for those cuts.</p><p>"Oh, this is going to be troublesome." But that is what Astrid says and Hiccup tenses up in alarm.</p><p>"Hiccup, the gel is all up in those cuts. Cleaning them won't be easy." Fishlegs warns him and Hiccup nods.</p><p>"Do they need to be stitched?" Hiccup asks.</p><p>"With all of this gunk in there? Probably. They aren't too deep, but it might help to avoid further risk for an infection." He tells him and Hiccup supposes that he'll just have to resign himself to the fact that he'll be here for a long while.</p>
<hr/><p>It took well over an hour, maybe two or even three. Bottom line is, Fishlegs and Astrid had to spend a long time heating, cleaning, and treating Hiccup's injuries before they could finally bandage him up.</p><p>"What was Viggo thinking?!" Astrid hisses angrily as she washes her hands.</p><p>"What does it matter? We all know Viggo's a creep." Snotlout complains. After a rejuvenating dinner, he and the twins have joined the others in Hiccup's hut to see how the treatment of their leader is going.</p><p>It's been hours since they got home and the three of them could see how much pain it was putting Hiccup in.</p><p>Cleaning open wounds isn't at all pleasant, let alone when a fire needs to be held close to said wounds in order to clean them properly. It wasn't good for neither his cuts nor his healthy skin.</p><p>His entire back is now red and tender from being burned and Hiccup trembles again from the abuse he was put through, that they had to put him through. Though they were given little choice, it angers them all.</p><p>But his wounds have been stitched and dressed and his newly required first-degree burns have been carefully cooled and treated with healing salve. He's eating now, the first meal he's had since he was taken. Or he's trying to, staring at his bowl of soup as they aren't sure what he's able to eat. Nothing warm in hindsight, the inside of his mouth is still sensitive.</p><p>He's quiet and without a doubt still reeling from this experience. He'll be fine eventually, but for a time, he'll need to recover from this mentally, too.</p><p>"I wonder what the purpose of this was, though. What was Viggo trying to accomplish?" Fishlegs asks, he's the first one to do so since they got home.</p><p>"Did he tell you anything?" Astrid faces Hiccup as she dries her hands. Viggo likes talking to him, maybe he told him something.</p><p>But Hiccup quietly shakes his head as there isn't anything to tell. He's too upset to take a spoonful and his stomach is too upset, too. Though it rumbles, he's too nauseous to eat.</p><p>"Hey, are you okay?" Noticing this, Astrid asks and approaches.</p><p>"Oh yeah, I bet he's fine." Snotlout responds sarcastically, finding her question to be a silly one.</p><p>Astrid glares at him momentarily. Of course, she knows he's not okay, but it never hurts to ask and see what he has to say.</p><p>"Ye-yeah, I'm fine, I just... I just feel too sick to my stomach to eat." Hiccup tells her, but whether it's because of the gel in his system, in his stomach, or because of the stripping of those strips, he doesn't know. Could even be a combination of all three, could be the exhaustion that this experience has left him with.</p><p>"Do you need to lie down?"</p><p>"Yeah." Hiccup hands her his bowl and she takes it before he can get up on wobbly legs. Fishlegs helps keep him steady.</p><p>Now that his injuries have been properly treated, maybe he can get some rest.</p><p>Toothless, who had been lying behind him, stands up to follow him up to the loft. He hasn't had much sleep as of late either due to his Rider disappearing.</p><p>The five watch them go up the stairs, noticing Hiccup swaying a few times before he makes it up.</p><p>"You want us to come back with your food later?" Astrid asks. Maybe they can heat it up over a fire when he does feel like he can handle a meal.</p><p>"No, I just want to be left alone for a bit." It makes sense. After what he's been through, Astrid would want to be left alone, too.</p><p>"So can we have Hiccup's food?" Ruffnut asks as they make their way out, the hut's door closing and leaving Hiccup and Toothless bathed in the light of a single candle standing by the bed.</p><p>Hiccup sits down on the edge of his bed, sighing and swaying. He feels so sick, the Fireworm gel must not be agreeing with him. He feels sick and he's tired, dying to lie down and curl up. So that's what he does.</p><p>He can feel his injuries protesting and almost doesn't go for the covers until Toothless pulls them over him, a corner between his gums.</p><p>"Thanks, Bud." Hiccup tells him, closing his eyes. He sleeps under them, not fully, with his back in the kind of state that it is. But his dragon is there to keep him warm, so maybe he can get some shuteye despite his many discomforts.</p><p>Soon after he closes his eyes, he sleeps, unaware of what Viggo's experiment has truly wrought upon him.</p>
<hr/><p>A couple of days later, evening arrives and the Riders are finishing their dinner while Astrid serves a sixth plate to bring to Hiccup. After having been briefly gone, Fishlegs returns to them with the medical supplies he would need to change Hiccup's bandages.</p><p>Tuffnut watches Astrid.</p><p>"Maybe we can get Hiccup to eat here?" He suggests to her, they haven't seen him as he recovers and the only ones who do see him are her and Fishlegs.</p><p>"We told you, Hiccup is too sick for visitors," Astrid tells him, surprisingly calm in spite of the fact she's had to repeat it many times already.</p><p>"Then how come you and Fishlegs get to see him? I can change a bandage!" Snotlout protests, mouth still full of mutton.</p><p>"Hiccup can barely stand our presence at the moment, I'm not exposing him to you or the twins." She tells him, picking the extra plate up.</p><p>The truth is, Toothless eventually did cave and come to tell them of the fever plaguing Hiccup. Since then it's only gone from bad to worse.</p><p>He's burning up all the time, his temperature dangerously high. He's throwing up everything he eats and drinks, already he's lost some weight. And then there's the pain that he's in. Claiming that every part of him hurts, he lies curled up most of the time, stomach upset.</p><p>
  <em>"My back, there's something wrong with my back."</em>
</p><p>Astrid and Fishlegs have checked over and over again, even removed the stitches to look at the wounds themselves when he told them to remove them. They've found nothing and believe him to be hallucinating due to the fever.</p><p>If anything, keeping Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut out of that hut is a favor to them, even if they don't see it that way.</p><p>Astrid and Fishlegs are both exhausted, barely having slept these past few days. Whatever is causing all of this, all they can do is help him be as comfortable as he can be in this.</p><p>They've already sent a message to Berk with the fastest Terrible Terror that they have. Now they'll just have to wait for Gothi, Stoick, and Gobber to come. There's no way Hiccup can make that trip back.</p><p>They go back to doing their own thing when Stormfly perks up by the entrance, where she waits for her human. Her attention seems to be drawn by something as she squawks and her head tilts like a bird's.</p><p>"What's wrong, girl?" Approaching with the plate, Astrid wants to ask her what it is that piques her interest. But Stormfly doesn't have to answer when it comes to them before she can.</p><p>It is a long blood-curdling scream that freezes them all in place.</p><p>They look at each other for a moment too long after it ends, reeling from the sheer torment in the sound.</p><p>"Hiccup!" Astrid yells and drops the plate of food she holds. They all sprint out of the clubhouse and towards the hut. Having been spooked, Stormfly is nowhere to be found.</p><p>It doesn't take them long to arrive with their legs carrying them as fast as humanly possible. They open the front entrance to permit themselves entry. As it flips open, they hurry inside and up to the loft to find...</p><p>"Oh... my..."</p><p>"... Gods..." Snotlout finishes for Astrid, who stare at the sight before them. They all stare.</p><p>Hiccup and Toothless are both nowhere to be found. What they're staring at instead is nothing but blood.</p><p>Sheets, bed, pillows, bucket, everything is splattered with blood. It's even on the walls and on the ceiling.</p><p>"What the fuck happened here?!" Tuffnut asks what they're all wondering, but can't say, too speechless to.</p><p>Something on the floor catches Astrid's attention and she leans down to grab it.</p><p>It's a torn stitch.</p><p>"Fishlegs," She calls him over to take a look.</p><p>"Is that..."</p><p>"From his back? I think so." Astrid responds, not wanting to imagine how or why it's on the floor and not where it's supposed to be. Snotlout looks as well, an expression of disgust on his face.</p><p>"Uh, that's not the only one." Ruffnut mentions and points towards several more pieces on the ground.</p><p>"Did they get torn off? What was Hiccup doing to himself?" Snotlout asks, that scream had to be coming from somewhere.</p><p>Nobody answers simply because no one can provide him with one. But from the patterns of the blood and the pieces of stitches, it almost looks like an explosion of blood had occurred, like it all came bursting out of the wounds on his back. That alone is mindboggling.</p><p>"Hey Astrid, considering our situation, maybe we should tell them how Hiccup was really doing," Fishlegs suggests and that doesn't make them feel too good with what they're about to hear.</p>
<hr/><p>They have left a convenient trail for them. It's a trail of blood, but it's something to find their friends with now that they've gone missing.</p><p>"Oh, I hope Hiccup's okay," Fishlegs wonders out loud, his arms full of medical supplies.</p><p>Snotlout rolls his eyes, too angry with Fishlegs and Astrid to even say anything now. Though the latter of the two sees it as a blessing, he's sure to make up for his silence soon.</p><p>"I'm sure he's fine. Or at least as fine as he can be and Toothless is still with them. They're probably waiting for us." Astrid reassures him.</p><p>"Uh, and how do we know that?" Tuffnut asks.</p><p>"Yeah, why would they be waiting for us if their first instinct was to run away?" Ruffnut asks and she has a point. That they would run away after an utterly puzzling experience like that is a strange thing to do. Especially for Hiccup, who should know better.</p><p>"I'm sure it was just the shock of... what must've happened." Astrid tries to give the incident a term, tries to call it something as things always feel better with a name, but finds she isn't sure what to call it. She also isn't sure anymore if it's a good idea to do this on foot as she naturally thought Hiccup and Toothless wouldn't be getting far. And yet, at the same time she can feel that they're close.</p><p>If they pass these trees, they'll find them. If they get past this rock, push through these bushes, but each time they end up being further away than she thinks.</p><p>"Ugh, this plan is dumb! We should be getting on our dragons and-" As Snotlout breaks his angry silence to propose a different plan, there is a loud rustling up ahead and they all grow quiet. It sounds like a dragon taking off and breaking through the trees to reach the sky, quite a specific sound, but one they're familiar with.</p><p>Recognizing this, they search the nearest opening in the greenery and look to the sky. High above them, they spot a black dragon with a little speck of red leaving the Edge. They would've thought it was Toothless and they would've given chase, if not for the fact that this species has four wings instead of two.</p><p>A new species of dragon? Now?</p><p>The Dragon Riders can only stare, too perplexed to climb onto their dragons to follow or to even grab a spyglass and see what it is, like it's their first time seeing a dragon.</p><p>But as exciting as it is to see another new dragon, they can't follow it. They need to find their team members first.</p><p>"What was that?" Tuffnut asks and no one can give him an answer.</p><p>They continue on the trail and while it ends quickly after, Hiccup and Toothless are nowhere to be found.</p>
<hr/><p>They tried to find their missing friends. The ceiling window was open and they figured that must be how they got away unseen. But after deducing that, they didn't get very far as the blood trail they followed ended after a little while with no further leads. It's like Hiccup and Toothless just vanished into thin air. Dragon's Edge isn't a small island either, finding them again will be hard.</p><p>But they've tried. They've searched the forests, they've searched the caves, any place where a human and a Night Fury could hide, only to come up with nothing.</p><p>So the Dragon Riders have decided to make a detour.</p><p>"You two shouldn't have lied about Hiccup!" Angered by the hiding and the deadends, Snotlout scolds two of the other Riders. He rides on top of Hookfang as they're all mid-flight.</p><p>But for once, Hookfang agrees with his human. He is of the opinion that Stormfly's and Meatlug's humans should've been more honest with the group.</p><p>"We didn't lie, Snotlout. Hiccup was sick, nobody could see this coming." Astrid is having none of that. She worries and she's been mulling the past few days over and over, trying to think of anything that she thought of as suspicious, but there really is nothing she can think of. She knows Fishlegs has been doing the same in vain.</p><p>There is nothing that pointed towards his back bursting open at the seams. The seams being the cuts Viggo put there.</p><p>"I still think you should've told us!" Snotlout exclaims.</p><p>"So you've mentioned." Astrid retorts, but before the former can say something again, Fishlegs speaks up.</p><p>"There it is!" He shouts, pointing towards the island in the distance.</p><p>They've left Dragon's Edge and their search to take another look at the place where Viggo held Hiccup and experimented on him. They don't expect to find anything, but finding Hiccup and Toothless first without a way to help might not be so wise. If there is anything this place can tell them that'll help, they would love to know.</p><p>What a first glance tells them? That the Dragon Hunters have packed up and left, the island is abandoned. Not surprising and not entirely a bad thing as that saves them the trouble of a battle, but only if Viggo left behind some clue to what he's done to their leader.</p><p>They find the cave quickly and ascend down the hole in the ceiling, steering there as they have little interest in the rest of the island for the time being. The hole is big enough even for Hookfang's wings to fit through.</p><p>Unsurprisingly, this place has been cleared as well. Everything's been taken.</p><p>Everything, except for one thing, a single book.</p><p>"Huh, that's weird." Snotlout remarks, most likely saying what they're all thinking as they land. His voice, Hookfang's last wing flaps, everything echoes here.</p><p>"Why would Viggo just leave something like that here? That not like him." Fishlegs wonders out loud. Meatlug, who he still sits on, gurgles worryingly in agreement. It is strange and she doesn't like it a bit.</p><p>"Maybe he forgot?" Tuffnut hesitantly suggests an explanation.</p><p>"Eh, I don't know, looks more like a trick to me." But Ruffnut offers a different perspective.</p><p>They all dismount, standing near the pedestal-like carved rock that still has Hiccup's blood on it. There isn't a lot, definitely outweighed by the bloodbath they found in his hut, but their eyes are still drawn to it.</p><p>"Ugh," Snotlout shows his disgust for what happened here.</p><p>Leaving her dragon's side, Astrid approaches the pedestal to get the book.</p><p>"Careful, what if it's a trap?" Fishlegs fears.</p><p>"No, I don't think so. I think Viggo left this here for us to find." Astrid thinks, picking the old book up with little problem. Which is a worrying thing to think. Because knowing Viggo, it most likely means he's done what he set out to do and that he wants to gloat to the Riders about another victory by leaving this behind.</p><p>The question now is, what will this book mean for them? Will it be an explanation or just more questions?</p><p>Astrid returns to her friends with it and they all gather around her to see. She flips it open.</p><p>At first glance, the book seems a little odd. There are pages showing strange creatures, texts detailing myths and legends even older than Vikings, a whole section on dragons. There is even something about the Fireworms and their queens, which is one of the pages bookmarked by the man who left this book for them to find.</p><p>Because, oh yes, Viggo has bookmarked a few pages for them. He's telling them what they should read, even leaving the occasional note to show which parts are important to read. And they know it's addressed to them as Viggo mentions Hiccup by name.</p><p>So clearly he expects his rival to be alive. If anything, it slightly eases the worry that Hiccup might be lying dead somewhere with Toothless in no state to get their friends.</p><p>Though it hurts their pride to give into Viggo's mockery, Astrid releases a deeply agitated sigh and turns to the first bookmark.</p><p>It is the aforementioned section on Fireworms, their queens, and their gel.</p><p>"So what is all of this supposed to mean?" Snotlout asks. Though the Dragons have a slightly easier time to see what is being shown, the Riders are all squeezed together behind Astrid to look over her shoulder and read what's been written.</p><p>What they read, isn't new information. They know how the gel works, they know how Fireworm Queens are made.</p><p>"For as sophisticated and handsome as he is, Viggo's a dick," Ruffnut says, feeling offended by the Hunter Chief's need to belittle their dragon knowledge.</p><p>"So we know from Hiccup that Fireworm gel was used on him, but this information doesn't explain why it was used on him or what it was supposed to do." Fishlegs mentions, so Astrid turns to a different bookmark and that's where the book's strange nature reappears again, causing even an array of befuddling reactions from the Dragons.</p><p>The pictures are the oddest part so far and they haven't even gotten to the walls of text yet.</p><p>"Uh, are those...?" Snotlout can barely finish his sentence, too spooked and confused.</p><p>"Awesome dragon people?! Sign me the fuck up!" Ruffnut excitedly declares, practically climbing over Snotlout to take a better look.</p><p>What they're looking at is indeed a page full of sketches with humans in possession of some very draconic traits. Horns, claws, spines, even large and majestic wings. The way they were drawn was in a strange mixture of both beauty and creepy. There appears to be a thin line between the two.</p><p>"Oh, yeah, sounds like real fun. I, too, want blood spurting out of me with such force that it hits the ceiling." Snotlout claps back at her, disgruntled with her words, whatever these dragon people have to do with what happened to Hiccup.</p><p>"Fishlegs, what do you make of this?" Astrid asks and hands the book over to him. Fishlegs takes it and pages through it, skimming the contents to get a general idea of what it's saying, paying special attention to the parts Viggo has marked for them.</p><p>"I'm not really sure. The author of this book clearly likes to talk about these stories revolving around a winged kind of people in this section. Like, a dragon species that look like humans or are something between humans and dragons or were once humans and turned into dragons." Fishlegs explains the gist of it, still paging through the book.</p><p>"So like the Wingmaidens?" Snotlout asks, curiously attempting to take another peek. He brings up Atali and her people because he wants to make sense of this. Things like books didn't always mean what they said, they were tricky like that. People with tiny dragons to carry them make a lot more sense to him than people who are dragons themselves.</p><p>"No, no baby dragons. More like, these people had wings of their own, they were born with them!" Fishlegs replies, fascinated by the very concept.</p><p>"Had?" But Astrid can't help but notice the wording he uses. Is it a coincidence or on purpose?</p><p>"Yes, had! This book talks about them supposedly having gone extinct a few generations back. During the time when Hamish the First became chief of Berk!" He responds.</p><p>"But in order for something to go extinct-" Fishlegs cuts Astrid off.</p><p>"They first need to have existed! And that's what this book is implying. That they weren't legends at all, but real!" He claims. This book implies that about a lot of things they know aren't real.</p><p>"So what's that got to do with Hiccup? He doesn't have wings. Or claws, or horns, or fire, he's not a dragon! Not in a literal sense." Snotlout brings up a point.</p><p>"Uh, obviously he is." Ruffnut rolls with her eyes in amusement.</p><p>"That's why he's also a magical creature because he's a dragon!" Tuffnut agrees, neither of them knowing how right their attempt at helping everyone relax will end up being.</p><p>The remaining three Riders and the Dragons focus back on their biggest clue so far, the book</p><p>"We should put him a year in the wild."</p><p>"Yeah,"</p><p>"He'll be so feral!"</p><p>"Yeah!"</p><p>"Can you two please take this seriously! The only way we can help Hiccup is if we take this seriously and find out what exactly Viggo wanted with him." Astrid scolds them when she has heard enough.</p><p>"Viggo wanted Hiccup to grow wings and you want <em>us</em> to take this seriously?" Tuffnut protests at the ridiculousness of it all. Viggo gets to do this and they let him get away with it?</p><p>"Uh yeah, not likely," Ruffnut says with a shake of her head.</p><p>"Viggo didn't want Hiccup to grow wings, that's ridiculous!" Astrid raises her voice.</p><p>"It kind of looks like that's exactly what he wanted to do, actually. He wants us to know about the Fireworm gel and the tales of these ancient people? This might be exactly what he's hinting at." Fishlegs argues in defense of the twins.</p><p>"But Hiccup is human!"</p><p>"Remember the cuts Viggo made? Those can't be a coincidence!"</p><p>"Okay, so let's pretend that's what he wanted to do, does it matter? We're here to find out what happened to Hiccup in his hut, not try to crawl inside a creep's head!" Snotlout puts an end to the discussion by diverting it just a tad.</p><p>"Except if... you know... he succeeded?" It's an outrageous suggestion, but Fishlegs still makes it.</p><p>They'll all have to take a moment to stare, the notion that that's what caused the mess in his hut not quite what they thought of. Even the Dragons are surprised.</p><p>"Okay, that's it, you're fired from dragon nerd duty." Snotlout decides, arms crossed.</p><p>"A winged Hiccup, you say. I'd tap that. The question is, will Astrid? Because if she won't I'm available." Ruffnut jokes, her brother nodding in agreement.</p><p>"Ugh, muttonheads."</p><p>Meanwhile, Astrid makes her way back to Stormfly, who lets her on her back.</p><p>"What're you doing?" Snotlout asks.</p><p>"We're going back to the Edge. We've done everything we can here and we know what we need to know." Astrid says.</p><p>"So what? You're just accepting this stupid theory?" Snotlout asks in disbelieve. But without answering him, Astrid and Stormfly take to the sky.</p><p>"Wait, seriously?! I thought you and Fishlegs were the smart ones of the group!" He shouts to her, but still, he and Hookfang follow her home, they all do.</p>
<hr/><p>Once on the Edge, the plan was to search again, to see where Hiccup and Toothless might've gone. That new dragon species might've thrown them for a loop, but not this time. They have tracker dragons and enough medical supplies and a general idea of what has happened, it was time to find them.</p><p>Of course, emphasis on "was" as the Dragon Riders arrive home late at night and Smidvarg comes to them with terrible news.</p><p>"Smidvarg! What's wrong, Buddy?" Tuffnut asks, a smile still on his face as he's always happy to see his Night Terror buddy.</p><p>The Night Terror screeches and shrieks flying off into a direction and expecting the humans and dragons to follow.</p><p>"We're following Smidvarg! Come on, Gang!" Astrid decides and they give chase, following the lead Terror to wherever the fire must be.</p><p>A fire is exactly what Smidvarg leads them to, a percentage of the forest on the East side of Dragon's Edge is burning, a large plume of smoke rises to the dark sky. And underneath it all, Dragon Hunter ships.</p><p>And just to make everything even worse, a plasma blast shoots free of the mess and creates a distress signal that briefly illuminates the sky.</p><p>"That must be Toothless!" Fishlegs cries out.</p><p>"And Hiccup is probably with them." Astrid acknowledges and Stormfly makes a dive.</p><p>Though a quick and effective surprise attack from above was probably the better option, Astrid and Stormfly let out a battle cry together. If only so it may take the Hunters' attention away from their missing friends.</p><p>It's a good attempt as a Hunter looks away from their captive to look at the source of that brave yelling.</p><p>"Dragon Riders!"</p><p>"Guys!" Hiccup shouts, overjoyed to see his friends. Toothless, who has just run out of fire to spend, can feel the relief as well.</p><p>"Quick, get a move on!" A Hunter orders, axehead clanging loudly against the cage Hiccup's been put in. The cage located on a cart, it starts to move as it's being pulled away.</p><p>"Bud!" Hiccup calls for his Night Fury before a tarp is thrown over him, completely blocking him from view.</p><p>"I've heard that a darkened cage is good for an animal, now calm yourself." The Hunter growls mockingly. But Hiccup can't calm, not even now that his friends are finally here and he can hear them engage the Hunters in combat. He doesn't know what took them so long, but they're here now.</p><p>"Riders, take care of the accompanying ships! We need Viggo for some answers!" Astrid orders and watches as a tarp-covered cage is moved onto the middle ship. She can hear Toothless and his sounds are coming from the forest. Hiccup must be under there.</p><p>The ships that have come for their friends are heavily armed, rightfully expecting a fight, but the Dragon Riders aren't about to be scared off by a few arrows and ballistas.</p><p>"Here we go!"</p><p>"Oh yeah!" Ruff and Tuff shout as Barch releases a toxic cloud of gas that envelopes a group of Hunters before it is sparked alight. The group screams as they are blown away, their cries cut short much too sudden.</p><p>"Come on, Hookfang, let's show them what we've got!" Snotlout tells his dragon and the Nightmare snarls in anticipation. He can feel the fire burning in his throat and he releases his fury onto one of three ships, burning the mast and the majority of the deck.</p><p>Meatlug helps, spewing lava in what remains and creating holes through each floor until the molten rock reaches the sea below.</p><p>Stormfly, she goes directly for Toothless, grabbing the net thrown over him while Astrid leaps from the saddle and runs at the nearest Hunter, axe raised.</p><p>With a cry, she brings it down and it meets the Hunter's sword. They engage each other in battle.</p><p>On Viggo's ship, the cage with Hiccup halts before the man himself and the tarp is lifted on one side.</p><p>Hiccup, though injured, backs up and hopefully stays out of Viggo's reach.</p><p>Viggo stands there, gripping the bars as he takes the sight of Hiccup in, everything that he can see in this darkness.</p><p>"You are more then I could've hoped for, my Dear Hiccup. Beautiful results." Viggo remarks and Hiccup hates what he's hearing. These are truly the last words he wants to hear come out of this man's mouth.</p><p>But at least he can see the familiar glow of fire, a ship must be burning to a crisp just out of his view. A good thing, it means his friends must be close.</p><p>"Viggo!" Astrid screams and Viggo lowers the tarp to hide his prisoner.</p><p>Astrid runs up the gangplank, axe bloodied and prepared while Stormfly and Toothless follow her onboard. There are still plenty of Hunters to take care of on this ship. And in the meantime, the other Dragon Riders sink the other ship accompanying the main one.</p><p>Viggo has come prepared, more men than usual are present and while the dragons take care of them, Astrid focuses on their Chief. She takes a leap and a swing and makes Viggo step away from the cage.</p><p>"Hiccup, we're here for you!" She tells him, loud enough to make sure she's heard through the cover and over the fire. She would like to lift the tarp and have a look at him, but the enemies surrounding them won't allow that. Though she can hear their dragons making quick work of them.</p><p>"Yeah, thanks." Hiccup's reply is surprisingly short, like he can't decide whether he should be thrilled or worried. A possible reason nags her in the back of her mind, but still having a hard time believing it, she pushes it away.</p><p>"What are you incompetents standing around for?! You're Dragon Hunters!" Viggo's temper flares when it seems like he may lose his experiment's precious results.</p><p>His men are useless and as his second ship begins to sink, the other Dragon Riders can all target this one.</p><p>With a growl, Viggo draws his sword and faces Astrid. After all his work, he'd rather not lose Hiccup now.</p><p>"You're surrounded, Viggo. Give up." Astrid challenges him, axe twirling dexterously in her hands. She's been waiting for this moment ever since Hiccup first got captured.</p><p>Viggo isn't too happy with her calls for his surrender, he would much rather just leave, but Astrid clearly isn't about to let him do so. His ship is burning all around him anyway, he won't be getting out of this unless he has a dinghy somewhere or something to distract her or stop her.</p><p>But then a burning mast comes falling down and Astrid needs to jump out of the way. It separates her and Hiccup.</p><p>"Astrid?!" He calls to her, having heard and felt something heavy fall right by his cage where she stood.</p><p>"I'm okay, Babe! Don't worry about me!" She shouts at him from over the roaring flames, looking back at Viggo over the fire only to find him gone.</p><p>"No!" She yells, frustrated with the Hunter Chief's disappearance.</p><p>Under the tarp, Hiccup makes use of what dragons put in a cage such as this can't take advantage of and that is a pair of hands.</p><p>In the dim light, he seeks the lock and thinks of a way to unlock it and free himself. Unfortunately, he has nothing on him, nothing besides his prosthetic. He could try to pry the door open with it.</p><p>Removing his prosthetic, back burning and hurting with every move, he uses it to force the cage door open. It takes a lot of effort, but the lock eventually caves with a groan. The door swings open and he's free.</p><p>Now what does he do?</p><p>Staying isn't an option as the tarp hiding him from view catches on fire. He has no time to think of his next move, his only choice is to get out of here.</p><p>Get out of here and expose himself.</p><p>Hiccup swallows the dread he feels, knowing he has to come out and reveal himself to the Dragon Riders some time. Now is as good a time as any.</p><p>Outside the Dragon Riders have finished the Hunters off, what few there remained, and their search for Viggo proved useless. If that man doesn't want to be found, they won't.</p><p>"Where did that bastard go?!" Snotlout growls, still needing to deal him some good old fashioned Jorgenson vengeance.</p><p>"Forget Viggo! Hiccup is trapped inside this thing, we need to get him out!" Astrid denies him his revenge, her eye has fallen on the burning tarp and she wants to get it off. She can't remove it with her hands, so her axe will have to do.</p><p>Or so she thinks until Stormfly takes initiative and grabs the tarp with her large talons, pulling it off and revealing the cage to be empty.</p><p>Astrid stares as Hiccup has apparently managed to slip out in the chaos? The lock appears to have been pried open.</p><p>"I'm-I'm here... I didn't leave."</p><p>Everyone looks toward the burning quarterdeck and find Toothless already there with his Rider. And Hiccup, he stands there with a mindboggling surprise for them.</p><p>Still shirtless, blood stains him and contrasts against his skin. On his back are the results of Viggo's experiment, two large, leathery, black wings akin to that of a Night Fur decorate his back. And in the light of the blaze consuming all around them, he makes for quite a sight.</p><p>None of the Dragon Riders say a word, too stunned to even think. The book was telling the truth. These people exist and Hiccup is now one of them.</p>
<hr/><p>"Do they hurt?" Astrid asks as she and Fishlegs tend to his back again, wiping down and cleaning the base of their leader's newly acquired wings.</p><p>Hiccup has told them how the day he got them went. How the pain in his back grew and grew, like something was dying to break from his skin until it eventually did, erupting out of him with all the blood and gore you'd imagine would accompany a birth such as that.</p><p>And when he heard the Riders come, he'd panicked and told Toothless to take him somewhere safe and isolated. This experience had left him a little rattled, to say the least, and he wanted to figure out what had happened to him, what was still happening to him, and if he wasn't just madly hallucinating it all.</p><p>"They do." Hiccup replies and Astrid lightens her touch.</p><p>The base certainly looks like something has torn right out of his skin. And though Fishlegs hypothesizes that this will heal nicely and grow to blend together seamlessly, they can't help but cringe at the sight now.</p><p>The burns on his back are gone, however. Fishlegs wanted to discuss what this could mean, but Hiccup had made it clear that he is too tired. That and he probably doesn't want to talk about underlying issues or whatnot just yet.</p><p>"We're going to leave you alone once we're done. Can't imagine how tired you must be." Astrid promises. They are all back at the hut anyway, so he can get some well-needed rest.</p><p>Or rather, they're at Fishlegs' hut since Fishlegs should probably keep an eye on him.</p><p>"Yeah, you look like you got dragged behind Meatlug again." Snotlout helpfully states. The twins are here as well and have been looking through the Grimborns' book. Upon closer inspection, much like the Dragon Eye, this book about legends that ended up being true also belongs to the Grimborn family, surprise, surprise.</p><p>"Oh, you think that I don't look too hot after growing extra bones, blood, muscle, skin, and what have you overnight?" Hiccup sasses back, so at least that is still intact.</p><p>"Eh, I don't know about that. I think the wings just make you look hotter." Ruffnut chimes in.</p><p>"Thank you, Ruffnut." Hiccup deadpans and Ruff clicks with her tongue and winks.</p><p>But the matter of his relationship with Astrid does bother him. Before Toothless, he couldn't even imagine himself together with her as a normal human being. But now that he's... that he's... <em>this</em>? What will happen to them now?</p><p>Astrid can see him think it, noticing first by the drooping of the wings she and Fishlegs are tending to. They're expressive, just like the rest of him, and to her, that means that they are definitely a part of him.</p><p>She moves to sit on his edge of the bed and draws his attention. His complexion is a ghostly pale after this experience and his eyes tired. It's a surprise he's even still sitting up after all of this.</p><p>"This doesn't change anything between us. I still want to be there for you through everything, the good, the bad, and the unexpected." Astrid tells him with honesty, lightly brushing one leathery wing only to have both of them freak out and spasm at her touch. Hiccup cringes, hearing a bowl clatter to the ground.</p><p>"Sorry, Fishlegs." Hiccup apologizes, looking over his shoulder at his fellow dragon enthusiast as he cleans the mess.</p><p>"Oh, don't worry about it! They're so new, I bet it's going to take a while to get used to them." Fishlegs accepts the apology, telling Hiccup not to fret.</p><p>Ruff and Tuff meanwhile, they share a mischievous look.</p><p>"Sensitive?" Astrid asks and Hiccup awkwardly nods. She makes a mental note to be more careful next time she touches them. He doesn't have control over them yet.</p><p>"Just promise me one thing. If I ever end up growing wings, that you'll still accept me in your life, too." She requests with a smile.</p><p>"You growing wings would be amazing. Just hopefully with less blood and screaming." Hiccup responds, voice still hoarse from that screech he had released when it happened to him.</p><p>Astrid smiles at him. Wings or no wings, she still loves him just as much.</p><p>"So what exactly does this mean?" Snotlout asks and grabs the book from the twins, who both protest at his thievery.</p><p>"If I had to make a guess, I'd say that at least one bloodline must still be alive to this very day." Fishlegs proposes a theory.</p><p>"If that's true, then why is Hiccup the only one? And why did Viggo have to make it happen?" Snotlout asks as it would make a lot more sense to him for Hiccup to have just been born with them.</p><p>"Survival? The book clearly states that their numbers dwindled rapidly. And Fireworm gel meant to make Fireworm Queens "bring out what was already there", so to speak. So if what makes the dragon people was even faintly present inside of Hiccup, the gel brought it out. And it came out a lot faster than was probably healthy because of the overdose Viggo gave him." Fishlegs give the most likely explanation of what he thinks might be going on here.</p><p>"Can I see it? When did this start happening?" Hiccup asks and Snotlout hands him the book. Before he can find the number himself, Fishlegs already has an answer ready for him.</p><p>"350 to 400 years ago."</p><p>Hiccup finds himself in shock, they all do.</p><p>"So when..." Astrid's voice trails.</p><p>"When the Red Death began her tyranny and demanded that dragons steal food from newly settled Vikings. These people... my people...? Either way, they must've been hunted down because Vikings thought they might've been the cause." It pains him to say it and he feels hurt thinking these might be his people that this happened to them.</p><p>That he's not entirely human, it's still too strange to think about. Even with those two things on his back to prove it.</p><p>He hands the book back to Snotlout, who takes it and closes it.</p><p>"Does it explain the hand thing?" Tuffnut asks curiously.</p><p>"The hand thing has nothing to do with this, Tuff, you can all do it." Hiccup replies. He's too tired to think any more of it. As fascinating as this discovery is, he's completely drained.</p><p>"Yeah, except for the fact that we can do the hand thing because you taught us how to understand dragons, Hiccup." Astrid reminds him, gazing at him. She's been holding his hand.</p><p>"Toothless taught me!"</p><p>"And maybe you understood because you were born with the ability to understand."</p><p>Astrid is giving him that look. That look that tells him that, as scary as it is, he should consider the possibility of what this might mean. And Hiccup supposes he doesn't have a defense for that one.</p><p>"So we kill the dragon people and it's a dragon man who saves us from all eventually dying from a tireless war against a faceless and nameless foe? Now that would be ironic." Tuffnut states and Ruffnut nods in agreement.</p><p>"So great, Hiccup is a dragon man. Which parent did he get it from?" Snotlout has one more question that needs answering.</p><p>And since none of them would know, they all look to Hiccup.</p><p>"After I got my mom's gift for me back, he told me that she sympathized with the dragons and that this is why she made me a dragon doll. She wanted me to sympathize with them as well. As much as he loves her gift for me now, it used to be his biggest gripe back then, with the whole war still going on. But dragons took her and, well, ate her." Hiccup explains and then looks at Toothless, who's apologetic rumblings draw his attention as if he was the one who did it.</p><p>"So I don't know who I would get this from. If I even got this from either of them." Though there is the dragon expert inside of him that tells him that dragons don't prefer humans as food, but fish. And that includes dragons as large as the Stormcutter who took his mother before he even turned one.</p><p>And besides, if she were still alive after all these years, she would've come back somehow, right?</p><p>Having a feeling what he might be thinking of, Astrid takes and squeezes his shoulder.</p><p>"You should rest." She tells him and Hiccup nods. There will still be plenty of time to figure everything out, including what he's going to wear now that none of his tunics are going to fit.</p><p>Though some vague ideas might be growing in his mind already.</p><p>Astrid and Fishlegs leave the bed, allowing Hiccup to lie down. He's only going to be able to sleep on his side and front from now on. Unless he pulls a Toothless and sleeps upsidedown. Now that would be fun to try out.</p><p>"Sleep," Astrid says and presses her lips on his in a kiss, still happy to do so. With or without Snotlout pretending like he's about to throw up his lunch in the background.</p><p>Toothless pulls a blanket over him and roars at the others to leave already.</p><p>"We know, T, we're leaving," Tuffnut says, hands up, and he leaves together with everyone else. They all give Hiccup one last glance, glad to have him back safe and sound, before they close the door and bathe the hut in darkness.</p><p>Hiccup watched them go, petting Toothless on the nose when he comes purring. After the days he's had, he wonders if he'll be able to sleep at all.</p><p>He knows the changes aren't done yet. He can feel that his body is still all kinds of wrong and he fears going through another excruciating experience like the birth of his wings.</p><p>And when the physical changes to his body are done, there will be other changes. The Riders have alerted him to the Terror mail they've sent to Berk, his father, mentor, and Gothi will be coming to the Edge tomorrow or the day after. They aren't going to take this well and Hiccup worries for his father's reaction the most. After Hiccup deals with those reactions, he'll have to worry about Berk's next.</p><p>And then there are the many unanswered questions. Clearly, those draconic humans existed, Hiccup is now living proof of them. But is he truly related to them? And what does that mean for him and his dragons? Has Toothless ever suspected anything?</p><p>Pulling his head away from the petting, Toothless rumbles and nudges his Rider, telling him to close his eyes and sleep.</p><p>"I will, Bud." Hiccup tells him, eyes heavy with sleep.</p><p>He supposes he'll have to wait and let the changes of the future come to him.</p><p>Hiccup closes his eyes and hopes his dreams will at least take him to more reassuring places.</p>
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